Maine gas prices hike slightly to $2.38 average

Gas prices have gone up slightly in Maine in the past week.

Gasoline price-monitoring website GasBuddy.com reports Monday that the average cost of a gallon of gas in Maine is $2.38.

Maine gas prices are 9.3 cents per gallon less compared to a month ago, and about $1.19 lower per gallon than at this time last year.

The price per gallon in Maine is a penny below the national average.

The Maine price is based on a survey of more than 1,200 gas stations.

Service firms expand at healthy pace, despite drop

U.S. service firms expanded at a slightly slower yet still healthy pace in March, an encouraging sign after multiple reports last week pointed to a slowing economy.

The Institute for Supply Management said Monday that its services index slipped to 56.5 last month, from 56.9 in February. Any reading over 50 indicates expansion.

A measure of sales fell last month and dragged down the overall index. But gauges of hiring and orders rose, evidence that service firms may see solid growth in the coming months.

Viacom announces layoffs and restructuring

Media giant Viacom is announcing a round of layoffs and restructuring that will result in $785 million in special expenses to be booked in its recently ended quarter.

The charge will result from a mix of write-downs of underperforming TV shows and the abandonment of shows that it bought, as well as severance costs.

A Viacom spokesman declined to say how many people would be laid off.

GM ignition switch caused 80 deaths, says latest data

Eighty deaths have been caused by General Motors’ defective ignition switches, three more than reported the prior week, according to the weekly update by the compensation fund determining eligibility of victims’ claims.

Another 1,246 cases remain under review out of the 4,342 filed since the fund was created last August. About 28 percent have been deemed ineligible either because there was insufficient documentation or the claimants failed to prove that the ignition switch was the primary cause of someone’s injury or death.

The claims arose from General Motors’ recall of about 2.5 million small carsfrom the 2003 through 2007 model years. The switches sometimes slipped from the “on” position to “accessory.” That caused a loss of electrical power to the cars’ steering and air bags.

– From news service reports